# IdeaVim

9 Hacker News commenters recommended IdeaVim and 0 criticized it, November 2025 to November 2026. It was recommended in 6 of 13 months.

**Verdict:** Recommended as a solid, frequently updated Vim emulation for JetBrains IDEs that works well with Neovim-style configs. Caveat: experts may find it limiting.

## Why people recommend it

- Configurable to match Neovim setups (2 comments): "I have also set up ideavim configuration to be as close to neovim as possible" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49019612)) "I use ideavim with configuration as close as possible to astronvim." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48001638))
- Best Vim emulation available (2 comments): "Ideavim is probably the best vim plugin and it gets new features every month." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49978128)) "Jetbrains IdeaVim plugin is the best vim emulation I've seen." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48185764))
- Works well with JetBrains features (2 comments): "IdeaVim has been one of the main things pulling me back to JetBrains for a while now" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48186036)) "IntelliJ shines when you use the command pallet, keyboard shortcuts, and IdeaVIM" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45947246))

## What people warn about

- Occasional issues with some features (1 comments): "IntelliJ's idea Vim plugin is a pretty decent one, but even there I have encountered the occasional issue" ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=50288585))
- Can feel annoying for experts (1 comments): "IdeaVIM is good enough, but only to the point - for an expert vimmer it may feel annoying." ([source](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45948300))

## Alternatives hackers recommend

- [vim-fugitive](https://hackerapproved.com/p/vim-fugitive.md): 10 recommend
- [Sidekick.nvim](https://hackerapproved.com/p/sidekick.md): 9 recommend
- [lazy.nvim](https://hackerapproved.com/p/lazy-nvim.md): 8 recommend
- [CodeCompanion.nvim](https://hackerapproved.com/p/codecompanion.md): 7 recommend
- [vim.pack](https://hackerapproved.com/p/vim-pack.md): 5 recommend

## Cite as

Hacker Approved, "IdeaVim", https://hackerapproved.com/p/ideavim/ (counts from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026).